arrested. A charge sheet must be issued and explained to the accused within 48 hours after the apprehension, according to Section 51 of the Police Ordinance. The importance of the right to be informed From these laws, it is clear that the accused has the very basic right to defense him/herself, seek legal advice and judicial remedies when the accused is facing any criminal charges, apprehension and imprisonment. However, there is one condition: the accused must know what charges he is facing before s/he can take any action. Hence, the prosecutor and the court must inform the accused all the information and ensure that the accused knows and understands the charges against him/her. This principle is further recognised under Section 11(2)(a) of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance: Trial (first stage) First hearing (summary) In the first hearing, the magistrate normally does not hear arguments nor conduct formal trial; instead, the magistrate normally reads the charges out loud before the accused and lets the accused have the chance to plead guilty or not guilty. Knowing the fact that the accused has been summonsed and informed of the charges, repeating the charges in open court to the accused seems very repetitive and redundant. In fact, it is necessary. First, the Secretary for Justice has the discretionary power to remove and change charges in between the first hearing and the time the prosecutors first formally issue charges according to the situation, evidence, and findings; thus, repeating charges before the accused can assure and verify the charges he is facing. Moreover, repeating the charges can prevent potential administrative errors (such as mixing up files due to similar names). Lastly, the accused is charged by the government which represents the society; thus, the public have the right to know what crime the accused is involved. As a result, repeating charges before the accused in open court can ensure justice, transparency, and fairness. In conclusion, in the first hearing, one of the following situations is going to happen: Guilty plea If the accused pleads guilty, the prosecutor will present a summary report of the evidence and findings to the court. The magistrate will then read the report out loud and ask the accused whether or not he agrees with the summary. Even though the accused pleads guilty and agrees with the summary report, the magistrate still has the responsibility to ensure that everything fulfils